The same phenomenon has helped American bourbon and whiskey distillers get to a point where they can take any Scottish competitor to the mat.

FORBES: Tastemakers: Wine, Beer and Spirits

In 1980, in their first front page article on a family-owned company, they highlighted Maker's Mark's against-the-trend practice of producing small quantities of handcrafted, premium-priced bourbon using traditional methods, and in the process they changed the world of American whiskey.

FORBES: The Kings Of Bourbon